New York City College of Technology: David Hinson, national director of the Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA), a bureau within the United States Department of Commerce.

Onondaga Community College: Cornelius B. Murphy Jr., who is retiring as president of the State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry.

Queens College of the City University of New York: Nasser D. Khalili, co-founder and chairman of the Maimonides Foundation, a charity that promotes peace and understanding among the three monotheistic faiths: Judaism, Christianity and Islam.

St. Joseph's College, in New York: Jonathan Lethem, the novelist; and Randi Shubin Dresner, president of Island Harvest.